Gauteng aims to become the first institution-free province in South Africa

Today the Gauteng Department of Social Development (GDSD), in partnership with Hope and Homes for Children, launches the One Child One Family project, which will see young children in institutional care moved in to families.

Gauteng is set to revolutionise child protection in the country by becoming the first South African Province to declare a moratorium on children under three years old entering institutional care. They also aim to reduce reliance on institutional care for older children.

The ambitious One Child One Family project will begin with the closure of two pilot institutions by July 2019. Family support services and foster and adoption care networks will be set up in their place.

Ultimately, the project will aim to reduce the number of children of all ages living in orphanages in Gauteng – making it the first institution-free province in South Africa.

Lourenza Foghill, Hope and Homes for Children South Africa’s Country Director said: “By closing institutions, supporting children into loving, stable families and tackling the root causes of family breakdown, the GDSD is striving for a day when institutions have been eradicated for good, not just in Gauteng, but across the whole of South Africa.”